Traffic Light

I think it is time the Department of Transportation put up a traffic light on the corner of One Mile Road/Lyons Road and Atlantic Avenue. On any given day coming from One Mile Road, you can sit there for at least 20 minutes before being able to make a right-hand turn. Having to make a left is almost impossible. With more and more people moving to Palm Beach County, the traffic is getting worse. I think a light will help at least a little.

The Interstate 595 construction is over but traffic signals at some intersections are out of whack. Traffic engineers are retooling the timing and say drivers should notice improvements in the next few weeks. But some intersections, such as westbound State Road 84 and Davie Road, don't have an easy solution. A free-flow lane that allowed drivers to bypass the traffic light during construction was eliminated because there's now a crosswalk linking to a new recreational trail. "To whomever adjusted the timing on the traffic lights on the exits along 595, you should rethink what you do for a living," said Manuel Cordero.

The traffic light in front of Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue Station 56 on 18th Street in West Boca is finally under way. Four poles have been installed, and the light should be in place within two months, said Mo Al-Turk, assistant director of the Palm Beach County Traffic Division. The station is at 6250 SW 18th St., between Powerline Road and Military Trail. The installation has been delayed by underground gas and water lines that were found at the site, according to Fattoush Jafar, signal designer for the county.

All the engineering work on traffic light timings does not, and will not, improve traffic flows. The reason is simple: Drivers rush to the next traffic light in excess of the posted speed limits and bunch up there, only to idle and slow traffic behind them. With the slower reaction times of drivers who are engaged in texting — despite prohibitions against that — the drivers stopped at intersections are very slow to start off. Drivers need training by experience stop at traffic lights rather than accelerate to beat the light.

Residents packed the City Commission chambers Wednesday night, urging commissioners to install a traffic light on Atlantic Boulevard near the location of a busy grocery store and a recent fatal traffic accident. The two-car accident, which seriously injured three people Saturday and killed a 76-year-old woman, occurred in the 5300 block of Atlantic Boulevard, police said. Residents at the meeting said the accident, and others that occur daily since a large grocery store opened in the area, could have been prevented by a traffic light.

About 60 residents from El Dorado Estates subdivision Wednesday urged the City Council to help get a traffic light installed at El Dorado Parkway and West Broward Boulevard. "It is a very grave concern," said Paul Miller, a spokesman for the group. Council members agreed that a light is needed at the intersection, and instructed its engineering staff to meet with residents. Miller said Broward County officials recommended widening the two-lane El Dorado Parkway, and said a traffic light is not needed.

The problem Readers continue to contact the Sun Sentinel about the lack of a traffic light at the entrance to a new shopping plaza at Hagen Ranch and Flavor Pict roads, west of Boynton Beach. Sun Sentinel Watch first reported this problem in September. The back story Shelley Katz, who lives in one of the many adult communities in this area, said that there was another accident at this intersection this month. "It's very dark out there at night and there is no traffic light," she said.

The problem Teresa Romano, of Delray Beach, contacted the Sun Sentinel about what she considers a dangerous intersection at San Castle Boulevard and Hypoluxo Road, west of Lake Worth. The back story This intersection has a flashing light, so cars on Hypoluxo Road do not have to stop. But Romano said this roadway stretch, which is close to the Interstate 95 interchange, is too busy for cars on San Castle to get out safely without a regular traffic light. Her stepson had a serious accident there last month.

Miramar An independent traffic consultant has recommended that a traffic light be installed at Miramar Parkway and Southwest 148th Avenue. With a signal, the intersection can easily handle traffic from several housing developments planned for the area, including the 408-home Windsor Palms, the consultant's report states. Residents have complained of traffic backups in the area, especially during peak hours. Some had asked that the entrance to Windsor Palms be moved from 148th Avenue to Miramar Parkway to alleviate congestion.

NORTH LAUDERDALE -- The state is dragging its heels in placing a traffic light at State Road 7 and Northwest 12th Street, city officials complained on Thursday. Public Safety Director Carl Crisp said several accidents have occurred and one person has died at the intersection since the city asked for the light more than a year ago. There have been 26 accidents at the intersection since January 1986, compared with nine accidents the year before, City Manager Eric Soroka said. The light is needed because of increased traffic from Tam O`Shanter shopping plaza, council members said.

A busy intersection without any traffic lights in the heart of the city is causing plenty of concern for Parkland residents and officials. At a recent meeting, the City Commission decided to set aside $35,000 from the city's reserves to fund the design of a traffic signal at the intersection of Nob Hill Road and Heron Bay Boulevard. It is the county's responsibility to install the traffic light, but county staff insist that the traffic count at the intersection does not meet the minimum required for a signal.

A 26-year-old Riviera Beach man cut off another driver and then pointed a rifle at him while they were both stopped at a traffic light, police said. The victim, a 41-year-old man, told police that he was driving north on North Congress Avenue near West 16th Court when he was cut off by a black Nissan Maxima, according to a Riviera Beach police arrest report. The Maxima was also braking aggressively in front of him. While stopped at a traffic light, the driver of the Maxima pointed a rifle at the victim, police said.

Q: When heading to westbound Interstate 595 from State Road 7, I end up at a traffic signal on State Road 84 and Davie Road. It feels like my westbound commute is held up by this single signal. Will this change when the I-595 construction is over? Tim Bartlemo, Plantation A: No, it will not change. On-ramps from S.R. 84, northbound and southbound S.R. 7 and Davie Road were combined into one ramp that merges onto westbound I-595 just east of University Drive. By combining the ramps, traffic flow on I-595 has improved.

Police say a red-light runner's passenger died following a five-vehicle crash in Pembroke Pines early Saturday. The driver of an eastbound red 2004 Dodge pickup went through a red light at Hiatus Road and Johnson Street about 8 a.m. and struck a northbound 2007 Mitsubishi Galant, police said. The crash caused the Galant to hit another three cars that were stopped and waiting at the traffic light in the westbound lanes of Johnson Street, police said. The pickup passenger, a 27-year-old man, was thrown from the vehicle and pinned under it. He was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

Boca Raton police are still investigating a possible case of road rage, when an off-duty Homeland Security agent out with his wife and three children was cut off by another car driving east on Glades Road. They both entered a department store parking lot. "When the off-duty agent approached the car, the driver drove off, possibly hitting the off-duty agent and/or the agent's wife. The off-duty agent fired one shot at the car, striking the rear quarter panel... The driver of the [other]

A man serving 15 years probation for exploiting the elderly found himself back in a Broward jail cell Thursday accused of taking advantage of another elderly man, court records showed. John Quick, 52, was charged with exploitation of the elderly for stopping a 91-year-old man at a traffic light in Davie and offering to do some car repairs, according to the police report. Broward Judge John "Jay" Hurley increased Quick's bond to $26,000 for the new charges and denied bond for the probation violation.

MARGATE -- For more than eight years, Alex Aaron has haggled with Florida Department of Transportation officials over a traffic light at the corner of Northwest First Street and Rock Island Road. He wants one there. DOT officials don`t. Undaunted, Aaron has formed a coalition of condo dwellers and PTA members to fight for one. And on Wednesday, they plan to jam the city hall chambers to muster support from commissioners in their fight. "I am hoping to overflow the place," Aaron said.

The Wellington Village Council approved medical office space on the 15.83-acre Wellington Parc site in an unanimous vote at its last meeting. The site was originally approved for 31,830 square feet of office space and some residential. The new approval will allow the office space to include medical use. Growth management director Bob Basehart said that when the project first went through approval only professional office space was requested. Under village code medical office space and professional office space are specifically different.

I am appalled by the new law passed — if you want to call it a law. It's sorely misguided and totally ineffective in preventing drivers from texting while driving. Where is the incentive not to text? A $30 fine only if pulled over for another infraction, and no points on your license. This is supposed to convince someone not to text while driving? I think not. In fact, in the last few days, I have witnessed several drivers texting while driving or while sitting at a traffic light, forgetting to watch as the light changes.